Central and Eastern Europe
Orthodox youths pose by their looms in a weaving school connected to a yeshiva.
Sighet, Romania, 1920s.
Since World War I, JDC has worked in Eastern Europe. Wartime emergency food and medical care evolved into the reestablishment and initiation of Jewish communal institutions including orphanages and child care agencies, health care services, Jewish schools, and vocational training programs during the postwar and interwar years. With the outbreak of World War II, JDC work continued until the U.S. entry into the war, after which, unable to continue its in-country presence, JDC sought other avenues to reach the needy. During the Communist era, JDC provided relief services to the extent possible but was expelled from various countries at different times and later invited to resume operations. Since the end of the Communist era, JDC has worked to assist Holocaust survivors and to develop Jewish renewal programs.

Kindergarten of the orphanage on Pushkinskaya Street
After World War I and the Russo-Polish War that followed (1919‒20), there were tens of thousands of Jewish orphans in Poland. The JDC supported homes for orphaned children such as these.
Brest-Litovsk, Poland (now Brest, Belarus), c.1921-1923. Photograph: Zaklad Fotograficzny “Modern.”

Children with the skin disease favus in the isolation ward of a JDC-sponsored medical facility
In the aftermath of World War I, poverty caused by wartime destruction and dislocation bred disease in Europe. JDC’s post-World War I work included support for the establishment of Jewish hospitals, child care institutions, food distribution stations, and other institutions throughout Poland.
Vilna, Poland (now Vilnius, Lithuania), c.1921-1923.

A young boy with emergency provisions provided by the JDC for Romanian Jewish refugees passing through Hungary to cross into Austria to reach the DP camps
Hungary, c.1946.

Needy Jews collect special JDC Passover packages at the Jewish community offices
JDC returned to Romania in 1967 at the official invitation of the government. It assisted the aging Jewish community by supporting kosher canteens, nursing homes, and medical offices operated by the Federation of Jewish Communities of Romania.
Bucharest, Romania, 1970.

Young Polish Jewish refugees carrying rations received from JDC for their journey to a Czech transient camp, en route to a DP camp in the American Zones of Austria and Germany
In addition to providing food rations, JDC established reception centers along the route from Poland to the American Zones where refugees received food and medical attention.
Czechoslovakia, c.1946. Photograph: Al Taylor.

Supplies being taken off of a horse-drawn wagon and being carried into a warehouse in Warsaw; the crates are labeled "JOINT"
JDC returned to Poland immediately after World War II, providing essential basic services to survivors.
Warsaw, Poland, c.1946-1947.

A needy child having a meal in a soup kitchen
Following World War II, JDC developed services to assist the many survivors and needy Jews.
Hungary, c.1948. Photograph: P. Jonas, Budapest, Hungary.

A young boy playing checkers in a JDC canteen for repatriated Jews
After having been forced by the Communist government to leave Poland in 1949, JDC was invited to return in 1957 to assist some 10,000 Polish Jewish repatriates arriving from the Soviet Union.
Lodz, Poland, c.1959.

Chief Rabbi Moses Rosen at a Simchat Torah celebration at the Choral Synagogue
JDC worked closely with Rosen, who also served as president of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Romania, to support the continuation of Jewish life in Romania even during the Communist era.
Bucharest, Romania, 1969.

Older women participating in a Keeping Healthy program
Support for programs for elderly Jews has been a core element of JDC’s work in Eastern Europe in the post-Cold War era.
Sofia, Bulgaria, c.1990. Photograph: Roy Mittelman.

Campers at the Ronald S. Lauder Foundation/ JDC International Summer Camp
Jewish children from across Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union, and beyond attend this summer camp, which plays a vital role in nurturing Jewish identity and future leaders.
Szarvas, Hungary, 1991. Photograph: Zoltan Szalay.

Two young boys attending the Maccabi games
JDC’s work in Eastern Europe in the post-Cold War era has focused on the renewal of Jewish communal life, including social activities and youth work.
Bulgaria, 1992.

Students learning the Hebrew alphabet displaying their workbooks
JDC supported this Jewish day school and other educational programs based in community centers in Eastern Europe, including the newly independent countries of the former Soviet Union.
Talinn, Estonia, c.1990s. Photograph: Roy Mittelman.

A member of the Sarajevo Jewish community prepares to depart on a JDC convoy
With the collapse of Yugoslavia and the ensuing war, JDC provided support to La Benevolencjia, the humanitarian society of Sarajevo’s Jewish community, and provided transport to those fleeing the war-torn city.
Sarajevo, Bosnia, 1994. Photograph: Edward Serotta.

A father and son light the Chanukah menorah
JDC supports community renewal throughout Eastern Europe.
Romania, 1998.
Exhibit
Everything Possible:
JDC and the Children of the DP Camps
Featuring historic photographs from the JDC Archives, focuses on JDC’s significant efforts on behalf of children in the displaced persons camps established by the Allied Armed Forces after World War II. JDC was permitted to enter the camps to supplement minimal provisions with critical nutritional, medical, educational, and religious services for survivors.
Galleries
News and Articles

Sarah Zarrow Lectures on the Joint and Women’s Vocational Education: Handicrafts Workshops for Jewish Girls, 1920s Lwów

Elizabeth (Barry) White and Joanna Sliwa present “The Counterfeit Countess: The Jewish Woman Who Rescued Thousands of Poles during the Holocaust”

Anna Sommer Schneider Lectures on Yiddishkeit and JDC’s Support for Jewish Education in Communist Poland

Merry Fitzpatrick Lectures on Heroic Medical Research from the Warsaw Ghetto: Preserving a JDC Legacy

Ethell Gershengorin Lectures on The JDC’s Activities on Behalf of Eastern European Jewish Children, 1919-1929

Jonathan Zisook Lectures on “Passover for the Passed Over”: Jewish Religious Life in Poland after 1968
